Buy Local

BUY LOCAL…BUT THEN ADD ONE MORE THING!

As we all know the “buy local” movement has been gaining traction for a number of years and shows no signs of slowing down. Buying local however, does not always guarantee that a product being sold is actually produced in a local region and not from another province. Purchasing locally sourced and produced maple syrup from a maple producer, with a fixed Ontario address, is the very best support one can give.

Out of province syrup floods the Ontario markets every year, most of which is carried by “big-box” grocery stores. Big-box stores can offer low prices and convenience but not necessarily better quality. Also not offered by big-box stores are all four grades of maple syrup and the many diversified delicious value-added maple products that so many maple producers can and do offer.

Buying from a local maple producer helps the farmer and his family stay on his land, which ultimately protects the health of his sugarbush. Keeping forests thriving is a huge benefit to both local wildlife, and in purifying the air we breathe.

The “lets-support-local-businesses” approach also clearly helps the local economy. Researchers have found that money spent in a community usually stays in that community.

There is great value in the relationship between the consumer who wants to know how their food is being made and the farmer who makes it. Seek out and develop a personal relationship with a maple producer and find out what your favourite flavour is; look for it and enjoy it in cooking and baking.

The Ontario Maple Syrup Producers' Association is very proud of all its members for the caring, time and effort they take in producing handcrafted maple syrup of the very finest and highest quality.